- Title
- Mathematical validation and credibility of diagnostic blocks for spinal pain
- Creator
- Engel, Andrew J.; Bogduk, Nikolai
- Relation
- Pain Medicine Vol. 17, Issue 10, p. 1821-1828
- Publisher Link
- http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/pm/pnw020
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press
- Resource Type
- journal article
- Date
- 2016
- Description
- Background: Diagnostic blocks are used in different ways for the diagnosis of spinal pain, but their validity has not been fully evaluated. Methods: Four clinical protocols were analyzed mathematically to determine the probability of correct responses arising by chance. The complement of this probability was adopted as a measure of the credibility of correct responses. Results: The credibility of responses varied from 50% to 95%, and was determined less by the agents used but more by what information was given to patients and if the agents were fully randomized for each block. Conclusions: Randomized, comparative local anesthetic blocks offer a credibility of 75%, but randomized, placebo-controlled blocks provide a credibility of 95%, and are thereby suitable as a criterion standard for diagnostic blocks.
- Subject
- spine; pain; diagnostic blocks; validity
- Identifier
- http://hdl.handle.net/1959.13/1346325
- Identifier
- uon:29838
- Identifier
- ISSN:1526-2375
- Language
- eng
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